Blog #9- How The Sausage Gets Made
For Thanksgiving, my family and I went to Sedona and stayed in a cabin. It was small, so our food was mostly processed (aside from the turkey). While I was making instant mash potatoes, my sister commented, "Gross, I don't like seeing how my food gets made". Then I thought, why? Why don't we want to know "how the sausage gets made"?
In this cartoon, we see a scientist in a tour hat standing in front of a building with a sign saying "SAUSAGES" and "Visitors Welcome". The scientist asks those passing by "What?! Not even one of you wants to see how they're made?" while looking confused.
The truth is people will only take action if it's presented in front of them; if the problem is hidden, then people don't feel guilty for contributing into "bad" ideals. Even when people are given the opportunity to know what goes on behind the scenes, they choose not to. Although my sister didn't like to see me making the instant mashed potatoes, she still ate her serving. Subconsciously, she knew that as long as she doesn't know how it's made, she'll remain in a state of bliss.The scientist's confusion stems from the media's "concern" to know what they don't know. There are so many news outlets, social media articles, and YouTube videos that will interview those in the food industry surrounding controversial topics. They say "The people want to know!", but do we really?
To Be Continued . . .
That's funny about your sister and the instant mashed potatoes! I never knew people would find THAT gross. I think you make a very good point about how we don't want to know how a lot of our food is made, however I wouldn't confine that to every culture. Take France for example: A little girl's grandfather took her out to get food from the market for dinner. There, they found a stall selling pet geese. They wanted to pick one out to eat. The little girl knew what the goose was for, and she wanted to pick it. The grandfather paid for it and snapped the neck in the car. It is simply a fact of life, and it is more a reflection on American culture what we're scared to know or not.
ReplyDeleteHi Juli!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with not wanting to know what goes on behind the scenes. I think there is a part of us that knows how gross and horrible food production can be, but we choose to ignore it, because as they say, Ignorance is bliss.
Wow, when I saw this cartoon I didn't understand it and was confused but now that you have explained it I fully understand its meaning. This was an excellent representation of what we all do today because it is true, if people saw the way most food is being made then they most likely would not have a pleasant experience and would try something different and find food by other means.
ReplyDeleteI love the cartoon and what you said about how "if the problem is hidden, then people don't feel guilty" stood out to me. Too often we keep things out of sight so that we don't feel uncomfortable, not just with food being made but in other aspects of our daily life. I think that acknowledging how our food gets made is the first step to creating a better farming culture and a healthier relationship with our food!
ReplyDelete